For the most part I’ve been really disappointed/saddened by how little life there seems to be in the Western Caribbean. Here on Roatan the West End was pretty terrible, but here in French Cay things have perked up quite a bit. This reef area is part of the Marine Park that people actually seem to be respecting. West End is part of the Marine Park, too, but so far life isn’t thriving. French Cay is quite a bit more fun. Lobster are everywhere. I could snatch up fifty every time we go. I was having such a good time looking for them, and taking pictures, that the kids told me they were going to go home if I didn’t stop. They got tired of waiting for me.
It’s easy to insulate yourself from the daily lives of the Hondurans if you’re just bouncing around from one nice anchorage to another, but a dinghy trip through the lagoon to go to the grocery store quickly puts things back in perspective.
This is where we tie the dinghy to walk up the hill to the grocery store. A young blind boy comes out of the house to collect forty Lempira for the family that lives here.
The marina we’re at while we wait for our part is connected to the Fantasy Island resort. A run-down three star sort of place on its own island with this ridiculously beautiful bay. For about ten bucks a day we have the run of the place.
That’s the sailboat that came running off the ocean recently and wrecked on this reef. The cruisers here don’t appear to think much of the guy that did it. He came in at night, watching his chart for what he said was supposed to be a 60 foot gap in the reef. Yeah, that gap doesn’t exist. A couple local guys managed to float it a few days later and get it out of there with a plan to turn it into an Airbnb. Gotta try and earn a buck somehow.
Cracks us up that the entire property is covered in hundreds and hundreds of these blue beach chairs yet there are appears to be maybe ten guests staying at the place.
The property here is like a strange sort of Honduran farm. Chickens, agoutis, monkeys and peacocks are all over the place. They make great composters for us after dinner.
I haven’t seen a ton of Lionfish, but there are a few around. Shame they are such a terrible invasive species, because they really are beautiful to look at.
I love watching Ouest and Lowe move through the water. They’re so effortless. We were swimming with a friend the other day, the same age, and the difference between them was stark. When people ask us what we do about school, these are the sort of simple things that I think about. I know being great at moving about in the ocean won’t gain them entrance into college on its own, but their interest in what’s underwater might. Being in the ocean daily could spark a thousand thoughts/ideas/interests.
This has been a good week for me to reflect on how incredibly different my kids’ lives are from the one I lived at their age. Aside from the water, there are things like this: Ouest was walking around with Lowe, having a snack, when a Capuchin Monkey plopped down out of a tree onto her shoulder and helped himself to her bag of peanuts. Ali came along a couple minutes behind them to find this scene. There are a couple of these guys who hang out around the marina area, and there are countless stories of people waking up in the morning to find a monkey stroking their hair, or watching helplessly as a monkey runs off with their cell phone.
A couple days later Lowe walked in just as casual as could be and said, “Mama, I was climbing this one tree and a monkey came up and jumped on my head.”
13 Comments on “French Cay”
What delightful pictures with the monkeys. Truly a paradise for snorkellers.
Buy some gloves, catch them lobsters..!
It’s a challenging business until you’ve worked up the nerve…
DAVE — taking Lobster from the Roatan Marine Park is not allowed.
I marvel at the experiences you are providing your children. Kudos. I think very good things will come from this. God Bless.
Just a magical childhood, it’s great to get to follow along.
Such fun photos, as always they bring a smile! As a teacher for 20+ years I feel you’re giving your kids the very best schooling there is in the world of experiences! They’re developing the curiosity & confidence to be life long learners-traits too often stifled by formal classroom schooling! Kudos! Keep on having fun together!
Ali was obsessed with monkeys as a child. She would have loved this encounter!
I don’t even know why I was…I wanted an Orangutan so bad. Remember Zippy?
Hey guys! Been a while since we ran into you in the Bahamas but sea shifter is catching up to you! Leaving Isla Mujeres for Belize tomorrow then to Honduras by late June and on down to San Blas in Panama. Hope we can catch up! Heading to the sea of Cortez by early next year! Safe travels and enjoy! Ken SV Sea Shifter
That was going to be our plan this season as well. But now I think we are heading for Rio Dulce now…
Safe travels to you, and maybe we will still be here in Honduras when you arrive.
Awesome spot and great for the kids to have these experiences! We just got back from Costa Rica which was amazing and our kids loved the monkeys, sloths, etc. Trust me your kids are not missing much in school and are getting a more valuable education every day of your travels!
“It’s easy to insulate yourself from the daily lives of the Hondurans…” I was wondering about that. I am a teacher in a public school in Colorado and we have many students who come from Honduras. None of their stories are good. In particular, a deaf girl came to us because the schools in Honduras refused to educate her. They figured since she was deaf, she wasn’t worth the time/effort. (If she was deaf, she must be dumb, too.) When you hear these real life stories, I can totally understand that mama risking it all to provide a better life for her child. And I wonder about the life of the little blind boy…
Yes it is hard seeing all the poverty but also some thing that should be seen as a child. There were many kids not in school, but I’ve no idea when their breaks are etc.